Two weeks ago, Attorney General William Barr published a letter describing the conclusions of the Special Attorney Robert Muller in investigating Russia under conditions favorable to President Donald Trump. Based on this letter and the republican back, the media reported that the investigation was largely disclosed by Trump. But what if these initial images of Muller's report were erroneous? What to do if the Republicans fed the press and the public with a bunch of lies?

While we do not see the report, we will not know what is in it. But we know what the Republicans have said about it, and ultimately, if we are not buried forever, we will be able to check these descriptions against the document. Here's a catalog of what Trump and his surrogates said after Barra's letter came out. Some of these claims were repeated uncritically by TV presenter, headline authors and reporters. If the claims are false, the media have a clear obligation: to recognize that the report is more threatening than we have been told.

1. Trump is released in the report. "The report is," White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney proclaimed in CNN interview on March 31st. "It completely exonerates the president." Trump, the White House, and the Republican National Committee have used the same word. Vice President Mike Pence has twice called this report "a complete excuse for the president."

2. The report excludes a conspiracy. According to the spin, promulgated by Republicans and parrot reporters, Muller just did not conduct evidence of conspiracy; he confirmed that there was no conspiracy. In an interview with Fox News on March 24, GOP chairman Ronna McDaniel attributed this sentence to a special lawyer: "Müller's report and the conclusions of this report, which claim that there was no conspiracy." The next day, the spokeswoman for the White House, Sarah Sanders, agreed. : "In the report they were incredibly clear that there was no conspiracy. Not only not the president, but any American. There is nobody in his team.

At a press conference on March 25, Sen. Lindsay Graham, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, assured the public: "The conclusion was firm, no doubt that no one in the campaign had trumpe contracted with the Russians." Republican House Leader Kevin McCarthy added: "There has never been a more thorough, in-depth study that we have of the American government. And without a shadow of doubt, he said that there is no conspiracy. White House Leader Kellian Conway said the same words in Müller's mouth: "This is exactly what Muller said: No conspiracy."

3. There is no proof of conspiracy. According to Trump's camp, Muller did not dispel the conspiracy myth; he found that he was not fully supported. "Muller's team spoke and said that there is absolutely no evidence of conspiracy," McDaniel said. Same statement by Graham about the report of a special lawyer: Muller said that there was no evidence of the conspiracy of President Trump or anyone of his campaign with the Russians.

At a press conference on March 26, Republican House leaders called the Texas Representative John Ratcliffe a microphone to deliver a summary of the report. "A special lawyer made a clear allegations," said Ratcliffe. "This is the accusation of those people who accused the president of conspiracy or conspiracy with Russia." As McCarthy, Whip House Republican Steve Scallise, and House Republican Conference head Liz Cheney looked at, Ratcliffe said that Muller "not only find insufficient evidence of conspiracy or conspiracy." He said that had no evidence. A special lawyer said that there is no evidence about a conspiracy-Cossack Russia.

4. There is no indirect evidence. This is considered the weakest form of evidence. Despite this, McCarthy says it has been proven that it does not exist. According to Muller's report, the leader of the House of Republicans said: "Those who have been saying for more than two years that there is indirect evidence of American consent [an] forgiveness."

5. No one spoke to Russians. Speaking at the White House on March 26, Conway rejected the "idea that each of us" in the campaign Trump "talks with Russians." After a few days at Fox News, she said she was confirmed by the "final findings of the investigation." conspiracy, no conspiracy, no contact with any Russian in the campaign that I have resorted to. "

6. None of the Americans was involved in Russian intervention. This is a broader statement than a denial of conspiracy or coordination. In his CNN interview on March 25, Sanders said the report "found that absolutely no American citizen, including the president, including all of his members, had anything to do with interfering in the 2016 election."

7. No coordination has even been made. In a statement issued on March 24, Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell argued that Muller supported this refusal by Trump: "The findings of the Special Advocate confirm the president's report that his campaign did not make any effort to conclude or coordinate with Russia in its efforts influence on the presidential elections in 2016 ".

8. Trump and his associates never approached Russian aid On March 28, speaking on the floor of the House, Skalis noted that, according to Barr's letter, Muller documented "multiple offers from the Russian people who helped the Trump campaign." Scolis said the report shows that Trump and his associates "did not even come to a close" before accepting these proposals.

9. The campaign rejected Russian offers. March 25 McCarthy said that the report found that "the Russians tried to intervene in the campaign. Campaign Trump said no. On March 28, Scallis argued that Muller's investigators "saw that Trump's campaign repelled even suggestions for help." Neither Skalis, nor McCarthy pointed to the nature of the alleged departure.

10. Questions Muller to Trump were insignificant. Later in the course of the investigation, Muller filed a written question to Trump, and Trump replied in writing. On March 25, the reporter asked Conway: "Why can not the country see the President's written responses?" Conway replied: "Because he answered questions that appeared to be not particularly relevant or important to anything.

11. The report excludes impediment to justice . On March 26, Trump said that Mueller specifically cleared him from obstacles. "Müller's report was great," Trump told reporters. – She said: "There are no obstacles. On March 31, Mulwani supported this statement. The report "said exactly what the president said would say," said Mulwangi, ABC News, "in which there was no conspiracy and no obstacles."

12. The report does not show any obstruction. This is a wider statement than a denial of impediment to justice. At least ninety times after Barr's letter came out, Conway argued that the letter and main report clearly denied that Trump had "obstructive behavior" or "obstructive behavior." The White House on March 25th. "I read citations," not obstructive behavior. "On March 26, she added:" This is exactly what Director Muller said: No conspiracy, no obstructive behavior. "

13. The report did not find any attempts to intervene in the investigation. In an interview on March 25 on PBS, Conway assured the audience: "The president did not try to intervene in the investigation. And of course, we know, there is in the documentation: that no one in the Justice did not feel that Mr. Muller could not do his job. "

14. Muller was unrestricted In a statement dated March 24, McCarthy said that Muller was given "unlimited power" to investigate Trump, and that it "allowed [Mueller’s] the team to fully pursue any issues that arose." A day later, at Fox News, McCarthy said the study confirmed Trump's innocence, since "there was no stone on the stone." Mullaine, referring to Barra's letter, insisted that Muller "gave the president absolutely zero treatment."

15. Muller did not see the reasons for interviewing Trump. Why did not Mueller get an interview with Trump? Because Muller did not want that, says Conway. On March 25, she told reporters: "Apparently, Mr. Müller and Mr. Rosenstein did not see the reasons for calling the president. They had answers to written questions … and they saw no reason to call the president on testimony. "

16. Müller decided that evidence of obstruction was not enough. In an interview with CNN on March 27 Amre summed up the conclusion of a special lawyer: "He says:" I do not have enough – I do not like the law of facts and the law to recommend that you should charge the president obstruction.

17. Müller asked Barra to decide whether Trump Justice was prevented . At a press conference on March 25, the Amrell said that Muller provided Barry with his proxy partner to address the issue. "He decided, and not Mr. Barr, to give this decision to the Attorney General," said Graham. Sanders, in an interview with CNN, argued that the investigators "sent it to the Attorney General and the Deputy Public Prosecutor to make that determination."

18. Trump-Russia contact reports were fake news. Last year, the New York Times and Washington Post won Pulitzer for 20 articles on Russia and the Trump campaign. Some articles related to Tramp's attempts to interrupt the investigation, but Russia's most detailed contacts with Trump, Donald Trump Jr., Jared Kushner, Michael Flynn, and Jeff Sean. On March 25, Conway and Sanders argued that Muller's findings disassociated these reports. Conway said the investigation revealed that "the major securities in this country won the Pulitzer Prize over their reports that they were completely false." "

So this is a list. Some of these allegations about Muller's report, beginning with the disclosure of excuse, conflict with Barr's letter. Others conflict with each other. How, for example, can Mueller clear Trump from the obstacles and at the same time leave this decision Barr? Trump's allies have also made new statements that seem foolish or absurd. The assertion made by Amrem during the last two weeks, at least eight times, is that Muller, who was not appointed until May 2017, investigated Trump and Russia for "two and a half years McCarthy's statement, testifies that Muller's report confirms that deputy Devin Nunes, a former chairman of the Republican Committee of the Intelligence Chamber, announced a deep-seated conspiracy under Trump's investigation. At a press conference on March 28, McCarthy stated: "Devine Nunez was right. Here is what the report says. "

In the end, we will see a report or at least those parts that have not been edited. This may indicate that some of these statements are true. But if they are false – if Republicans lie about this report and the media are falling into this lie, then it's time to talk less about dismissal and more about concealing. Barra's letter and blitz rotate around him may prove to be another chapter in a republican campaign to bury the truth.

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